Counting Corvids Chapter Seven

The girls came round in a dark cave, no longer lit by the eerie ambiance of the vampires, the only light came from the small fire in the middle of the room. The echoes of the pouring rain outside filling the cave, sat on a rock was a man, he hadn’t noticed them come round till they sat up. “I used to come to these caves to escape my home, but you look as though you’ve served your torture here?”
“What happened?” The man helped Madi up Willow watched the firelight flicker and dance on his face as he helped Madi into a more comfortable seat before turning to help Willow up. He was thoroughly handsome, as he took her hand and her breath away.

He helped her onto his rock that he had sat on and began tending to a cut on Willows forehead. “I don’t know what happened, I found you in here, exactly as you were, I came in to escape the rain in my old haunt and there you were. It’s a stormy mess out there.”

“We need to be getting back, we’ll be missed” Madi’s voice of reason brought Willow to her senses. “She’s right, thank you but we have to get home” there was a crack of lightening that traveled through the depths of the cave illuminating them for a moment. The man tending Willows head couldn’t have looked older then mid to late twenties with blue green eyes and dark brown hair, he was nothing short of stunning.

“Give it a few minutes, hey, let the worst of the storm pass” Willow and Madi agreed.

“I’m Madi by the way and she’s Willow” hoping for some attention from the man “What beautiful names” he said clearly unable to take his eyes off of Willow. “I’m Hunter, so what brought you girls here.” Both chorused that they weren’t too sure.

After a while they had begun sharing a little information about themselves as the storm thundered on Hunter revealed he had been and had come back to the area to find out who he really was, after an hour or so the storm eased just as they had begun to feel like they had almost always known each other. Helping Willow home with her very sore head and aching body they walked through the lighter down pour. Walking by what was believed to be the Gourlay compound they saw a few people watching the building surveying how to get in perhaps, they keep their heads down and hurried Willow forward. Hunter left her and Madi talking, under a sheltered alcove while he went back. Curious the girls followed him, the two people turned towards Hunter, Madi and Willow this time choosing to run, Hunter caught up with the slowest and dragged him back.

A few minutes later he revealed himself as a demon, a Colter demon to be exact. He reveals the Marfa of their master, Gray, was to appear. Hunter explained that Gray was a high level demon who was vanquished hundreds of years ago, a Marfa was an escaped spirit of an upper level demon on the hunt for a new body. The Colter smirked as he said they and the new body waiting for their master.

Hunter, Madi and Willow followed the Colter to find where his master would return, borrowing an unlocked, abandoned chevvy, they chased down the Marfa to discover a nest of Colter demons holding a man to the ground, the Marfa entered his body and the Colters cheered. Willow coming up from behind knocked the possessed man out with a blow to the head as Madi and hunter fought the Colters off, throwing the limp form in the back seat.

Hunter got behind the wheel as Madi started barking at her “I’ve heard of Marfas, they can only inhabit mortal humans, without magic”
“Great what do I do?”
“Turn him over. Oh my God it’s Ollie, its Ollie.”
“What do I do?”

“Your closest, you’re going to have to do it”
“Do what?”

“Share blood, of the two of you, you must entwine your blood and his so your magical blood can course his veins”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes now do it” Willow managed to do it not before the ball of light reappeared and sped off in a new direction.

“Its close to midnight hopefully it won’t find a body in time, or we are very much screwed” Madi’s voice was weak and hollow. Minutes later they had pulled at Willows and lifted the limp form into the house.

“Hey Ollie, come on wake up”

“What did you do? Where are those things?” Willow knelt beside him, “they aren’t here, your safe we got you away from them”

“I’m not safe am I? Not when I’m around you Madi they told me they chose me because of you, what did you do?” Madi was in stunned silence by his sudden anger, she could find no answer. There was nothing Willow could say, she got up to allow them some privacy. Minutes later a furious Ollie was out the door when the girls went to find him they couldn’t see him anywhere.